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Cancer Major 
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TITLE |
Marvin's Room (1996) |
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DISABILITY |
Cancer
Mental Stroke Bone marrow transplant |
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NOTES |
A woman has
spent 20 years devoted to looking after her |
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father who
had a stroke. Then she discovers she has cancer. |
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Her only
chance of survival is a bone marrow transplant. |
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The only
suitable donors are her sister whom she hasn't seen |
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for years,
and her sister's children. |
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DiCaprio
plays Hank who is upset that his mother, Lee, |
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(Streep) has
kicked out his father. So he sets fire to the |
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house and is
sent to psychiatric institute. |
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The mother
is a hairdresser ( Streep in her working class |
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mode) is
given somewhere to live by nuns. |
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Her sister,
Bessie, (Keaton) long estranged is a childless |
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maiden aunt
dedicated to looking after their father (20 years in the dying
after a stroke) and their aunt Ruth who is losing her faculties. |
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Lee sees
psychiatrist in charge of son's treatment who wants |
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the mother
to be more involved but Lee is too involved in |
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herself and
is taking a degree is cosmatology (see below). |
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There are
rather primitive if clean conditions in the institute |
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with rows
and rows of beds. Hank is shown sedated and |
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Meanwhile
the sister, Bessie, has her own problems and |
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goes to see
a doctor (De Niro). He's a cycling doctor (trouser |
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clips and
helmet complete). He gives her a series of tests |
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but is cagey
about telling her anything. He does a biopsy in |
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his surgery
without a nurse and alone with a woman patient |
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(is this
normal?) The doc's brother is his receptionist and |
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appears none
too bright. It is eventually revealed that Bessie |
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has leukemia
and ideally requires a bone marrow transplant. |
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The doc
rings her sister to see whether she or her sons are a |
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match.
Hank is
released from the institute (on parole?) and they drive from Ohio to
Florida for the first reunion for 20 years.
Hank who can't stand his
mother gets on with his childless
aunt who turns out to be quite irresponsible letting him drive
her car which he does right into the sea. The camera
conveniently cuts away as the waves lap over the car and
aunt Bessie is almost in hysterics loving this wildness. (This
is very much a 'film thing' like Pacino in Scent of a Woman
playing a blind man driving a car where actions have no
consequences).
Without a bone marrow transplant aunt Bessie would have to
have chemotherapy but eventually this would lead to
deterioration.
Meanwhile Lee arranges for a tour around a nursing home
because she isn't prepared to look after dad and Ruth. But
eventually the sisters are reconciled which is symbolised by
Lee doing her sister's hair which is actually a wig.
It is revealed that Hank was beaten by his father which is why
mum left him. Hank steals some money and takes off in a car
but returns just as mum is about to light out. None of the
tests on the family offer hope for Bessy but mum stays to look
after sister, dad and Ruth.
Not so good as the cast but O.K.
Cosmatology: Lee's degree is in beauty treatment which involves the
like manicuring and flattening hair.
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Notes
See review at
Women's Studies Database |
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